Texas Governor George W. Bush defended the death penalty as a deterrent to crime and presided over a record 143 executions.
In five years he halted only one, because of faulty evidence, and granted one 30-day reprieve.
He based decisions on doubt about guilt and court opportunity for reviewing legal issues.
He believed no innocent people were executed and that he had no right to overturn jury verdicts.
He could recommend clemency only if the 18-member Board of Pardons and Paroles, all of whom he appointed, recommended it.
Board members held no meetings and voted by fax or telephone.
Bush opposed public clemency meetings as opportunities for emotionalizing the process.
Bush speeded the appeals process, opposed barring execution of the mentally retarded, vetoed creation of impartial public defender systems, and said he favored DNA testing but did not push to require it.
Texas' clemency process has been criticized widely as violating minimum safeguards for human rights.
The parole board has been described as hostile, secretive, unconstitutional, unfair to indigent defendants, and interested only in preserving the system and the illusion of review.
Proceedings are undocumented so there is no way to determine whether voting is arbitrary or meets due process requirements.
Few letters are forwarded to board members.
The Pope and others unsuccessfully asked Bush to stay executions for a Canadian citizen, a born-again woman, and the mentally ill.
Bush has been criticized for callousness and being disengaged.
The public still supports the death penalty but support is shrinking dramatically.
